Wine Harvest ...the bad, and the good...

Neal Jones/¡Vamanos! Columnist

Posted:
10/05/2012 03:08:26 PM MDT

There were some tough grape harvests stories over the past year. Australia suffered a terrible flood that hurt many vineyards in the most premium wine areas. There was a wild fire that threatened the harvest time in South Africa almost the same time of our Little Bear Fire.

Then we also had the tough news from New Mexico growers - the May 3 and 4 record-breaking late freeze hit and damaged many vines. It happened right at the wrong time, especially in the northern part of the state. The growing season was not much better with continuing drought conditions for pretty much the entire state. Even the Madison vineyards along the Pecos had a tough time with a reliable water source. It was reported that some of the largest vineyards near Deming lost 70 percent of their fruit crop last year.

Drought still is an issue in New Mexico, but this first report on the harvest comes from Europe.

If you've kept up with international economic news, you heard two things: the European debt crisis is not over and, what's worse, China may rule that Europe is dumping wine in China at below cost.

Pardon me if I diverge on my news position with Blue Ocean Network.

What you may have not heard is that this year's European grape harvest is sharply lower. Some estimate as much as 40 percent in some of parts of Portugal, which means winemakers will have fewer grapes to blend and, in the end, fewer bottles to offer.

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The situation is even worse in parts of Burgundy, where hail storms pummeled vineyards in Pommard, Santenay and Volnay destroying nearly 80 percent of the harvest, according to the Burgundy Wine Board. When the growers were not fighting the cold weather that accompanies hailstorms, the regular weather nemesis of vines mildew threatened.

In situations like this, there is some optimism in the quality of the survivors. Some years with this type of volatility in weather will bring exceptional grapes to those that missed the damage.

My Portuguese wine news source at Portugalwines.org led me to the promise of "small berries and high concentration". The man, Bernardo Cabral, of Santa Vitoria, is looking for a small production of high quality Portuguese wines.

The winemaker at Esporao wines, Dave Baverstock, says they are about halfway through the harvest. They are expecting yields to be 20-30 percent less than average yields.

Next door in Spain, Rioja wines are expected to be lower in yields as well. Rioja's wines in storage are fine, but the last thing that industry wanted was another issue with the local economy.

The harvest is just beginning in the Loire in France. They too, see a smaller harvest this year, not to the point of disaster, but less than average.

Looking at Italian wines, there are two real climates to look at. One is in the Piedmont, and the other is Central and Southern Italy where the Mediterranean Sea influences the growing season.

The Piedmont saw a heatwave this summer and it lasted into the shortened growing season. That will affect some of the grapes that do better with the slower growth/ripening time, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon and Moscato. The good news is that the heat likely helped the Barbaresco grape the Nebbiolo, and excellent Italian red.

The second area in Italy, down further along the peninsula, had a dry year. Low rain was bad news for many growers that don't have established irrigation systems. But the vineyards growing the Montepulciano have reported good fruit and a plentiful harvest is expected. Overall, central Italy will see about a 10 percent drop in the grape harvest this year, not too far off the average.

The hot weather also affected the Mediterranean growing areas of Greece and Cyprus. They say it's been the hottest growing season since records were kept since 1897. The heat has affected the growth of Syrah and Merlot there. But, the native Xinomavro grape of Greek reds has done exceedingly well this season.

With the Riesling grapes, you should look not only to Germany, but also Canada.

Germany is just beginning the harvest season there because there was a late start to the growing season. Parts of the Upper Rhine were delayed by cold weather late into the spring. But, the preliminary news is good for Rhine and Mosel growing areas, if the weather holds for ripening.

Canada has produced some of the best Riesling wines in recent years and most of the wineries seem to want to cash in on the premium Ice Wine. That is not so good this year. The grapes have ripened well and are ready for harvest. Ice wine needs the first frost (at least one) to hit the fruit before picking. So, this year may be a good year for Riesling from Canada, but the Ice Wines may be limited.